Watts Up in Watopia: Bright Lights, Big City
Are you loving the new expansion to Makuri Islands or are you leaving it for the daytime routes you have been consistently navigating? While the PC users are crabbing about the increased demands Neokyo is putting on their graphics cards, many others in the Zwift community are embracing the nighttime vibe of the bright lights. For longtime crit racers, Neokyo has that twilight crit feel triggering our peripheral vision for shadows and the glint of streetlights on our clear lenses.
If you are in the loving Neokyo category, then there is more in store for you in the coming weeks.
Neokyo Badge Hunting Series
You can hunt Neokyo route badges on your own or you can pick them up within a series of events now running. The series runs between November 29th and December 19th with makeup events between December 15th and December 19th. The four routes in the series are:
SLEEPLESS CITY (5.7 mi / 9.2 km; 268 ft // 81.7 m)
WANDERING FLATS (16 mi // 25.7 km; 866 ft // 264 m)
RAILWAYS AND ROOFTOPS (3.8 mi // 6.1 km; 226 ft // 68.9 m)
TEMPLES AND TOWERS (20.2 mi // 32.5 km; 2,261.2 ft // 689.2 m)
Neokyo Kit Unlock
By picking up badges within the series, you unlock the Neokyo kit so that you will blend within your surroundings in Neokyo. Unlock the kit at 25%, the shoes at 50%, and the helmet at 100%.
L39ION of L.A. Crit Series
With all the twists and turns and sprint zones in Neokyo, we were hoping for a criterium course like Crit City. And Zwift delivered with an event-only crit course. The tight course and twilight vibe will make the number one men’s and women’s criterium team, L39ION of Los Angeles, feel right at home.
The crit series kicks off next week with an orientation ride on Dec 7th led by Rahsaan Bahati, and races run three times a day on Tuesdays and Fridays between Dec 10th and 21st. You will need a Zwiftpower account, so get that done well before you first race.
Guest World Schedule
Here’s this week’s guest worlds, so you can plan to earn some of the route badges you are missing:
Monday: Makuri Islands & New York
Tuesday: Makuri Islands & New York
Wednesday: Makuri Islands & New York
Thursday: Innsbruck & Richmond
Friday: Innsbruck & Richmond
Slowtwich Indoors Event Preview (All Times Eastern)
Go to Zwift Events to sign up for these rides and runs.
Monday 100/100 Group Run, 7:00 AM & 7:00 PM
Join us for a group run on the virtual track of May Field that will kick start your week. Join others who are working on the Slowtwitch challenge of 100 runs of 3 miles or 30 minutes in 100 days. Don’t forget that each of the five ride workouts and five run workouts have a short and long option. Rather than canceling a workout when you are crunched for time, you can complete the short version and still reap the benefits of the program.
Tuesday Ride of the Valkryies Workout (Women Only), 6:00 AM
This event is by and for women. It’s an almost no-drop, rubber-banded Structured Training workout, featuring a warm-up, set of intervals, and a cool-down. This week’s workout is Double Tabata Power.
Tuesday Structured Training, 7:00 PM
Our Tuesday ride features triathlon-focused cycling workouts written by coaches and pro athletes affiliated with Slowtwitch. The workouts last 60 minutes and will help add variety and interest to your weekly training schedule. This week’s workout is Hang On!
Wednesday Group Run, 7:00 AM & 7:00 PM
A more scenic group run on the Quatch Quest course. This is another opportunity to join others who are working on the Slowtwitch challenge of 100 runs of 3 miles or 30 minutes in 100 days.
Thursday Rise & Grind, 5:35 AM
This workout is an early morning bracer for the East Coast crowd. This week’s workout is Speedplay – Mind Your Cadence.
Thursday SWIFT Ride, 6:55 PM
The newest ride to the Slowtwitch Indoors family, Slowtwitch SWIFT (Strong Women, It's Fun Together!) is here to bring another women's only ride to a slightly friendlier time slot. This ride will focus slightly more on strength-based work so bring those climbing legs. But even if you're feeling more like Mark Cavendish in the mountains of the Tour de France, so long as you keep the pedals moving, you'll stay with our group. This week’s workout is Drop the Hammer.
Friday Festina Lente, 9:00 AM
This structured training workout is designed to get you geared up for the weekend. Roughly translated as “make haste, slowly,” Festina Lente features a workout that will get your engine running but still leave some in the tank for the big rides and races you have planned for the weekend. This ride is led by members of the Kanberra Cycling Team as lead beacon. Workouts are designed by Craig Polston of EVOQ.BIKE. This week’s workout is Double Tabata Power.
